Cubs take drastic step with Kyle Tucker as he hits rock bottom
Kyle Tucker needs a reset.
Amid a horrible slump that has the Wrigley faithful booing him, the Cubs’ prized offseason acquisition will likely sit for several games, according to manager Craig Counsell.
Tucker last homered on July 19 and is hitting .171 with a .195 slugging percentage and .522 OPS over his last 102 plate appearances while the Cubs (70-54) have fallen out of the NL Central race.
He went 0-for-4 in Monday’s 7-0 loss to the Brewers and heard boos in each of his last three at-bats, according to ESPN.
“Kyle’s frustrated as well. The fans are frustrated, and Kyle is frustrated and it’s unfortunate,” Counsell said. “When you make outs, it doesn’t look great, but he’s trying, it’s just not clicking. We’re going to have to take a step back here, for sure, and just give him some days off to reset him hopefully.
“He’s frustrated, and we’re not coming up with solutions for him and he’s not coming up with solutions. Sometimes, you have to take some steps back to go forward again.”
Counsell indicated the Cubs planned to sit Tucker for the nightcap of the scheduled doubleheader Monday, but bad weather postponed the second game and the teams will play two on Tuesday.
That the Cubs are considering such measures for one of the game’s premier players shows how drastic his dip has been over the past month.
Tucker owned a slash line of .281/.385/.504 with an .889 OPS after his last homer on July 19, but he now sits at .261/.374/.447 with an .821 OPS.
He has just two extra-base hits in his last 82 at-bats and five RBIs.
The fans showed their displeasure for Tucker’s recent performance Sunday against the Pirates when he hit a grounder to first and did not run.
Monday’s game featured Tucker grounding out in his first three at-bats before flying out to end his day.
Tucker suffered a jam right ring finger in June but has said that’s not affecting him, per ESPN, and Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said before Monday’s game that Tucker is healthy.
“It’s not for lack of effort on either the coaching side or on Kyle’s side,” Hoyer said. “Yeah, he hasn’t slugged in quite a while. The ball is not in the air, the exit (velocities) aren’t high. I do think a lot of it is mechanical. If you look at his swing early in the year versus now, it’s less connected and therefore less powerful.”
The Cubs have gone 13-15 in the second half while Tucker has struggled, but they are now nine games back of the red-hot Brewers in the division and five games clear of a postseason spot.
For the Cubs to make any type of postseason run, they’ll need Tucker to return to form.
Playing up to his capabilities would also help Tucker this offseason when he’s a free agent since the outfielder is projected to receive a handsome contract.
“He’s too good a player for it not to click,” Hoyer said. “One of these days it’s going to click and he’s going to get hot again. Hopefully, it’s a torrid-hot streak like it was in April.
“I think everyone is seeing the same thing, including him, it’s a lot of balls on the ground, there’s not a lot of slug. He’ll keep working to get there.”
Credit to Nypost AND Peoples
